Outcast of the World Meets the Rugrats
by LottaHandell90
Summary: 20-yr-old Charlotte Handel, living a disappointing and aimless life, wishes she had friends who truly understand her. Her wish comes true when she meets the Rugrats posse! They all take an adventure to find out Char's true identity. * DISCONTINUED*
1. Prologue

**I DO NOT own the Rugrats posse (courtesy of Klasky-Csupo), only Charlotte AKA "Carlotta", Rudá and Io are mine**

Tommy, Phil, Lil, Kimi, and Charlotte are 20, Dil is 19, Chuckie and Rudá are c. 21, Angelica, Susie and Harold are 22, and Io is c. 25. The year is 2010.

* * *

Somewhere in North Carolina

The girl from North Carolina had had enough. She needed a change to her life. She had virtually nothing to live for. No friends. No path in life. No one that truly understands her. The girl, Charlotte Handel, was sitting in her dorm room all alone, the last day of classes. She couldn't believe that she had survived her first year at college.

College? What the heck was she doing at college anyway? She had wanted to be a teacher since forever, but she had to face facts. Public speaking was not her cup of tea. Neither was socializing with her peers. So, what was she to be? A toiling miserable labour worker like her parents, making as little money as possible?

She heard cries of delightful, party-animal college students, outside the freshman residential hall almost every night and wondered what the heck they have to be so happy about.

Uncle James won't be making any more money for a while in THIS economy, so I'll be taking a break from this so-called college that was just like high school for young adults, as opposed to minors. Well, good then! I wasn't going anywhere anyway.

The alarm clock said 10 PM.

"Well, it's time to get going to bed. My parents are comin' tomorrow to take me out of this dad-gum place."

* * *

Somewhere in California

Tommy Pickles, his brother Dil and their good friends were on their way home from their respective universities. They were so excited to get back home, after a long and exhausting spring semester.

"Can you believe that it's summer break now?" Phil DeVille says.

"I can," Chuckie Finster piped up. "I feel like it's been years, since spring break!"

"Well, we're finally home!" Chuckie's Japanese step-sister Kimi said. "It's been a while since we've hung out at the Java Lava."

"Yeah, let's go!" Phil cried.

"I'm all for a cappuccino!"

"I'm partial to the Coco espresso."

Java Lava was full of young and hip customers as usual. The kids met up at their usual table toward the counter, and Tommy went to order their drinks.

Tommy, Chuckie, Phil and Lil have been close since practically the very beginning of their lives, and Kimi and Dil showed up when Kimi's mom married Chuckie's dad and the birth of Dil. But even then, the kids were still wee toddlers. Now they are college students.

"I wonder what's in store for us this summer?" Lil said.

"Nothing special," Phil said. "Ever since the economy tanked, we've all had to make sacrifices."

"Poor Angelica! She always liked shopping, until there was no money left," Kimi laughs.

"Now, she just mopes around complaining of the economy and politics."

"Things sure have changed."

"Yeah."


	2. Charlotte Runs Away

Charlotte Handel couldn't sleep. So she wrote in her journals. Her "novels," she called them. She always wanted to write for a living, but a young, talentless girl such of herself could just rethink that dream. They probably sucked anyway. But she loved writing them regardless. Stories about young heroines, either from broken or loving families with loyal friends, in her utopia of Dolland, where things are near perfect and people love each other.

Charlotte Handel couldn't sleep. So she wrote in her journals. Her "novels," she called them. She always wanted to write for a living, but a young, talentless girl such of herself could just rethink that dream. They probably sucked anyway. But she loved writing them regardless. Stories about young heroines, either from broken or loving families with loyal friends, in her utopia of Dolland, where things are near perfect and people love each other.

Huh. I bet the colleges are better too, she thought to herself.

Yelling from the hall. Bet it's those crazy boys who hang around in the first floor.

Whatever.

So she decided to rant, as opposed to writing.

"Well, since I got no body to talk to, I suppose I just talk to the air. At least I get my feelings out.

"You see, I live here, North Carolina, go to college. For what purpose? I'm a girl with no friends and no future. The misfit. The loser. You know how they end up? Virtually disappearing in the real world alone, looking for what? Hope? Success? Love? Ha!

"Well, I could do one of two things, run away or live my life as normal?"

She looked around her dorm room, messy, yet to pack anything.

"Yep. I'm definitely running away."

* * *

Charlotte only had a limited number of items to pack her things in. Luckily, only a few of her things she ever owned mattered to her, like her books, "novels", basketball magazines, her wallet with her important cards, other small important items, her laptop, some clothes to last at least a week, her posters, and her stuffed cat with the one ear. The other crap she could live without.

She managed to stuff everything in four handbags, her laptop and some of her books in her old backpack from high school.

"Okay. I'm out of here."

She managed to carry everything out of her dorm room, taking the key with her. She would probably have to find some way to leave her key at school, but not now. She had to get out.

Charlotte walked toward the quad of campus with all her belongings. The quad was virtually empty, except for the one student who was running around excitedly, looking for an end-of-semester party.

"Hey!"

Oh, great. A nosy fellow student.

"Hello there, youngster."

Worse. A nosy member of staff or faculty.

She whirled around to see some strange lady with black, purplish hair…

"I am your fairy godmother."

"I'm dreaming! This is some kind of dream!"

"No dream, dear. You are not dreaming."

"How do you know?"

"I just know."

"Whatever. Can't you see that I'm running away here?"

"Ah. So you are."

"Yeah. So, what are you going to do about it?"

"Nothing. I only want to help. You're troubled."

"Damn right I am. I got no friends. My parents are freaks, 'cuz they ain't got money, my uncle ain't got no money, and my life is going nowhere in general."

"I can help you in that."

"How?"

"Make a wish."

"Okay. I will. I wish I had at least ONE friend who gets me, you know. Loyal friends, who love me for me. Not Mom's young friends, who treat me like some stupid kid, no crazy peers who are so different from me. None of those people understand me, you know?"

"Your wish is my command, sweetie."

* * *

_Okay, so this is pretty much the introduction to the main characters, including that of Charlotte. Next, the Rugrats get the surprise of their lives._


	3. Onward to New York City!

"New York?"

Tommy and the others were sitting in the living room of the Pickles' residence, in the late evening. Angelica, Tommy and Dil's bossy, materialistic cousin, and her kind, down-to-earth African-American friend/rival Susie Carmichael were also there.

Stu, Tommy and Dil's dad read out the mysterious message.

_To Angelica, Tommy and Dil Pickles, Chuckie and Kimi Finster, Phil and Lil DeVille, Susie Carmichael…._

_New York awaits your presence. _

_G. F._

"Whoever is G. F. attached round-trip tickets. Sounds like a summer trip to me," Tommy said.

"A trip? For how long?" Chuckie cried.

"Who would the kids stay with? We don't know anyone from New York!" Didi, Tommy and Dil's mom was worried as usual.

"I beg to differ. There's a photographer, divides his time between New York and the San Francisco area, named Ari, I think?" Dil said.

"Isn't that the dude that we stayed with a long time ago when we all got lost trying to go to LA?" Phil wondered.

"They also had a bunch of crazy people from South Dakota stay with them before we got there," Tommy said.

"I suppose the kids could go-" Didi said. "But only if an adult goes along with them-"

"We're already adults," argued Phil.

"Let them go, Deed," Stu said. "They're old enough."

"I suppose so," Didi sighed.

* * *

The next day came and it was time to head off for the East Coast. Tommy, Chuckie, Phil, Lil, Kimi, Dil, Angelica, and Susie boarded a flight that would take them from San Francisco to LaGuardia airport in New York City.

"Can you believe we're going to New York?" Tommy cried.

"At least we're not going in the RV like we did that one year-" Chuckie looked nervously around the aircraft. He hated and was scared of flying in airplanes.

"This is gonna be the best trip ever!" Lil cried. "No parents. No lame tours. Just us, on our own little trip!"

"Like the one to LA, when we all got lost?" Chuckie said.

"Come on, Chuckie. That was a long time ago, when we were kids in high school. Now we're experienced adults in college!" Phil fought back.

"Oh boy."

"This is going to be fun, Chuckie," Kimi cried. "Enjoy it, while it lasts!"

"I guess so."

"You know what's weird?" Angelica said to Susie.

"What?"

"We have two thousand dollars put in all our debit cards! I didn't have any money yesterday!"

"And I'm supposed to think this is a big deal?"

"This means hard-core shopping! I suppose I could take you, Carmichael. There's no way that I'm going with the "college students."

Susie sighed and rolled her eyes.

The kids then spoke of their plans.

"First off, who is this G. F.?" Chuckie wondered.

"Yeah, who is he?" Phil also wanted to know.

"Or her-" Lil chimed in.

"Whoever it is, he sure is generous. Two thousand dollars in EACH of our debit cards."

"Maybe one of us has a rich relative," Dil said.

"None of us know any one THAT rich."

"Or he could be an alien-"

"Thanks, Dil-" Tommy stopped him. "Anyway, let's forget this G. F. and talk about our plans."

"Okay."

The kids spoke of possible sights and seeings. Since New York is a big, bustling place, they might have to compromise on a lot of places, and the expensiveness of the city might as well lead them to eating at cheaper restaurants…

After a long flight, the plane finally landed in LaGuardia Airport. Chuckie was whimpering during the whole landing ordeal.

When it stopped and clearance was given to the passengers to go, the Rugrats got off the plane and toward the terminal.

"Now what?" Phil said.

"I dunno. Wait for G. F. by the baggage claim/ pick up area. If we end up waiting too long, we take a taxi," Tommy said.

"To where?" Chuckie cried, nervously.

"I'm still working on that."

"Ohh-"

So, they waited.


	4. Charlotte & the Rugrats Meet

Charlotte looked anxiously around LaGuardia Airport, as she headed toward the baggage claim/pickup area.

She found some kids around her age talking amongst themselves. She sat down toward them.

She smiled. She had flown on an airplane (even though she detested flying on them) to New York, all by herself. No Mom. And nothing bad happened. Of course, she didn't have her mom nagging her like she was some retarded person who'd never flown before.

Thank you, Good Fairy.

Plus, she was sitting by some seemly nice college kids, so she could pretend that she was with the group on some trip, not all by herself, wondering where to go.

New York. A place full of memories, good and bad. She'd been in the city three times, all with her mom, all staying with Uncle James. The only good to come out of those trips were Rucker Park, Fab Five Freddy, James' friend, Kurt Thomson and his family, great food, and of course her last meeting with- _him._

Rudá Tallbott.

She remembered seeing that handsome young man, coming toward her with Seth Tallbott and Nicole Rauscher, other friends of James' right outside of Masa Restaurant, one of the most expensive restaurants in New York, located in Time Warner Center. She had felt those butterflies in her stomach, when they embraced in greeting among "old friends."

But that was so long ago, and even then she had no chance with him, friendship or romance.

She hadn't seen him since, and since then he had huge problems in his life, mostly caused by Nicole, his German step mom.

Nicole. That horrid, fake, crazy woman.

"Hey, you okay?"

One of the kids, a Japanese girl, had chosen to make the brave move of approaching her.

"Huh?"

"You looked like you were crying."

"Oh. Sorry. Who are you?"

"Kimi Finster."

"Charlotte Handel. Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why'd you approach me?"

"You seem lonely and sad, and you seem nice."

"But I'm unapproachable."

"Not to me."

"You seem nice, too, like a lot of people I know."

"Hey, you wanna meet my friends?"

"Sure."

Kimi beckoned over the group of kids she was with.

"I'd like to introduce my brother Chuckie, our friends Tommy, Dil, Phil, Lil, Angelica and Susie. Guys, this is Charlotte Handel."

They greeted her friendlily.

"Well, while you "college kids" are busy making a new friend, Susie and I are taking a taxi into the city," Angelica piped up.

"Shouldn't we all stay together, Angelica?" Tommy said.

"Yeah. Tommy's right, Angelica. We should stay together."

"At that rate, we'll be here forever. Come on, Carmichael."

The two then left to hail a taxi.

"I guess it's just us," Tommy said. "Hey, Charlotte? Would you like to hang out with us to check out the city?"

"Sure. I don't know why I'm here, anyhow, and I know a little bit of the city, but I suck at directions."

"It's cool. We have maps."

"Now, we're doomed," Phil said.

The kids attempt to hail taxis.

"Taxi! Taxi! TAXI!"

"Great! I can't even hail a taxi. Fail," Charlotte said.

"Hey, you've been here before. How'd you get to the city?" Phil wanted to know.

"My uncle sends a car service to pick me and Mom up."

"Oh, I guess that's out of the question, since your uncle probably isn't expecting you."

"Good. He'll just send me back to the hellhole from whence I came."

"Hey, I see a taxi van!" Lil cried.

"Hey, taxi! TAXI!"

Luckily, the van stopped near them.

"Come on!"

With that, the seven loaded on the taxi van, and the driver asked where to.

"Uh oh. I have no idea," Charlotte muttered.

"Where do you want to go?" Kimi offered.

"Yeah, you know this place better than all of us," Dil said.

"I guess Harlem. 155th and Frederick Douglass Boulevard. Rucker Park."

The van then took them from the airport, across the JFK bridge and toward the Harlem-Bronx area of New York City.

"Rucker Park."

Charlotte looked toward the Rucker, where a few kids were playing street basketball.

"The taxi fare," she realized. "I wonder if they accept debit cards, 'cuz it's all I have."

"We brought cash," Tommy said.

Thank the Lord.

The kids got off the taxi and walked toward Rucker Park. They sat down on the bleachers.

"So, your uncle lives around here?" Kimi said.

"Yeah, on 149th. His name's James Curitan, and he's my mom's older brother. He's an art curator, so he makes more money than anyone in my family. He's the only reason why me and my parents cope with this world."

"I take it that you're from a lower income family?"

"Yep. It's the worst. No vacations. Always fighting and worrying about money."

"Wow, it must be the worst, especially since the economy tanked," Lil said. "How do you get through college- are you even in college?"

"Well, yeah. I finished my freshman year at this little Quaker college in North Carolina. My uncle paid for a fraction of it. The rest of the money was scholarships and loans."

"Uh oh. Loans? You afraid you're gonna graduate deep in debt?" Chuckie asked.

"Hell yeah. Every minute. But all those stupid grown-ups keep telling me not to "worry about the money and to focus on my schoolwork." But how the hell can I do that, when I could lose everything and not even afford to go to college anyway?!"

"Grown-ups. They just don't understand," Kimi sighed.

"Amen to that, sister."

"Well, since we obviously can't go to your uncle's flat, where shall we go?" Tommy brought up the "who do we stay with?" subject.

"Well, there's a friend of ours who has a nice place, named Kurt, and there is- gulp- Seth's house-"

"Seth? Who is he?"

"Another friend of ours. He and his family, I've known of for a few years now. Let's not talk more of this. Either him or Kurt would report me to James, who in turn could haul my rear end back to the South."

"I guess we might as well find out who G. F. is," Phil said.

"Yeah. We should. He or she probably lives here. Otherwise, why would we be here?" Tommy said.

"Wait. Let's ask Charlotte. She couldn't have gotten here all by herself-" Kimi said.

Charlotte then pours out the story of meeting the strange woman with the purple/black hair, talking in an Italian accent, calling herself "the fairy godmother" or the "good fairy."

"She was the one who paid for my ticket. Maybe that's the G. F. you guys are talking about."

"Huh, strange. We've never met her before-" Lil mused. "Although we know quite a bit of Italians-"

The seven decide to take a walk through Harlem, mostly in search of a restaurant to have brunch.

"Harlem seems like a really cool place. How long has your uncle been living here?" Dil asked Charlotte.

"He's been living here for about a year or so. Before then, he's lived in Chelsea, in Manhattan for like three decades. And thank goodness, too. I like Harlem a lot better, and it's more "homey" and safe, even more than back in the South.

"I wish I could live here."

"Yeah. I bet. The South must be a bad place," Chuckie said.

"Not totally. The North Carolina area is known as a college basketball hotbed, so it's not a total bore."

"You're a basketball fan? Well that explains why you wanted to go to that basketball court place," Phil said.

"Not just any basketball court. _The _ultimate basketball court."

The others stare at her blankly.

"Aw- we'll watch the documentary about the history sometime. That'll explain things much better than I can."

The seven decide to get takeout from a Mexican restaurant. Hopefully, the kids could meet up with G. F. (possibly the weird Italian woman) soon.

"Wonder if Angelica and Susie are having as much fun as we are," Phil said.


	5. Meeting Camilla Montello

"Thanks a million, Carmichael! Now we're lost!" Angelica's angry, frustrated voice rang out on the Upper East Side.

"_You're _the one who wanted to go shopping in Manhattan, Angelica. If we would have stayed with the others-" Susie started.

"Can it! Those college kids would have gotten us more lost than we are now."

Susie sighed, heavily. "It's no use bickering. It won't make us less lost than we are now."

The two walked a bit further and they got to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"Hey, let's go in here!" Susie suggested.

"That dinky old place?"

"It's the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Angelica. Oh, I've always wanted to go here."

"Oh, and every other boring museum in the country?"

"Come on."

The two go in the museum.

"The Romare Bearden show should be good. It's in the Acheson Wallace Wing."

"Romare who?"

"He was a prominent African-American artist from the 20th century. This show should be a collection of his works about Harlem."

"Harlem? Didn't the others call to tell us that they are there-?"

Susie then dragged Angelica toward the Romare Bearden show. A woman, with flowing long purplish hair was the only other patron in the area.

The two got closer to the woman.

"Great show, no?" she said in a mysterious Italian accent.

"Yeah. You like it?" Susie said.

"Oh, si, si. It is very nice."

Silence.

"Are you youngsters here for trip?"

"Yeah. You?"

"I live here, in the city. You come from where?"

"California. I'm Susie and this here is Angelica."

"Susie Carmichael and Angelica Pickles?"

"Uh, yes? How do you know our names?"

"Well-" she beckoned them toward her. "I am the "Good Fairy."

"G. F.?"

"Yes, but not my real name. I am Camilla Francesca Maria Montello."

"Montello? Are you by any chance related to Gianna Montello?"

"She is my niece. You are her friends?"

"We went to high school together. I knew her pretty well. She mentioned a wealthy art dealer aunt who travels around the world."

"That is me."

"But why? Why did you send us to New York?"

"She mentioned you and all your friends, loyal and the like, and I wanted to help Charlotte Handel."

"How did you know Charlotte Handel?"

"Her uncle is a friend of friends. I hear things about her. Good things. The poor girl, was close to giving up when I had her flown out of North Carolina. Where is she anyway?"

"She's with the others somewhere in the city."

"Oh, dear. I hope they're not lost."

"They're in Harlem, probably waiting for us," Angelica said. "Apparently, they can't survive without me."

Susie sighed.

* * *

Charlotte, Tommy, Dil, Phil, Lil, Chuckie and Kimi ate their burritos and enchiladas at the Jackie Robinson Park.

Charlotte smiled.

"This reminds me of a time, during my first trip to Italy. We had lunch on the steps of an old church. Those were some good times."

"Who with?" Chuckie asked.

"My could-have-been friends."

"Seth and his family?" Tommy guessed.

"Bingo, Tommy."

Silence.

"Let's change the subject, okay?" Charlotte sighed.

"Okay," Kimi seemed concerned though.

They then spoke of their times in college. Tommy is attending a film school in Los Angeles, Dil at a state university in LA, Phil and Lil at a state university in San Francisco, Chuckie and Angelica (at the same school?!) at a state university in Santa Barbara, Kimi at the leading art school in California for Japanese graphic design, Susie in a women's college in the Oakland area and Harold Rumkin, friend of Angelica and Susie (and Susie's boyfriend) at another college in Oakland, right near her. Charlotte then told the other kids more of her small North Carolina Quaker college. Although, she loved going there and all the people seem nice, she felt misery because of her inability to make friends.

"Don't feel bad," Chuckie said. "I can't really make friends either. People think of me as a "geek" or "nerd."

"I thought only Angelica thought that," Phil pointed out.

The kids laugh. Chuckie just shook his head.

A nifty sportscar stopped toward the entrance to the park, and Angelica and Susie came toward them, with the Italian woman.

"Hey, they're here, and look who they brought!"

Camilla Montello made herself known to the nine college-aged kids, including that of Charlotte Handel.

"So you're an acquaintance of James Curitan, my uncle?"

"Ah, si. But I don't know him too well."

"Not well enough to report me to him?"

"I am the one that helped you run away, remember?"

"Good point. What about my parents? They must be pissed!"

"They are worried about you, so I called them and told them about my "friendship" with James, and they believe that you are here with me, to visit him."

"So, they're not gonna kill me?"

"No. I told them that you are making new friends as we speak. They seemed to take it well."

"I guess. Wow, I thought that they would be trying to ruin my life if I ran here to New York. I wonder what happened?"

"Let's say I have a certain charm-"

"Uh huh."

Camilla then had Charlotte, Kimi, and Lil load in the sports-car, while the others hailed a taxi or two to take them to Camilla's flat in the Upper West Side, up toward the Morningside Heights and Harlem area.

The flat was more like a glamourous brownstone house.

The inside- was huge! The living room was especially decorated with frilly Italian decor. The kitchen was especially amazing, with a wood fire pizza oven and the accompanying dining room with the long table.

The two upper floors had several bedrooms for the kids to sleep in, and the basement downstairs had a den and a family room.

"Camilla, you've brought the bambini!" a man, who was introduced as Camilla's English-Italian husband Charles Muffret cried.

"Si. I did. Nine of them. We have children in the house now!"

"And you two are happy about this?" Angelica was dumbfounded.

"Ah, si! We- Charles and I- could never have bambini of our own, so yes- we are happy."

"Oh brother."


	6. A New Mystery Person

That evening, toward bedtime, Charlotte was checking her easy-to-check email on her laptop. Of course, she got the usual NBA daily news, but nothing from- _him._

She sighed, and closed the laptop. Off to bed.

As soon as she fell asleep, Kimi sneaked in her room, and grabbed the laptop, and headed for her own bedroom, where Lil and Susie were waiting.

"This probably isn't a good idea, but something is upsetting her and the only way to find out is to look through her email," Kimi then told them.

"Let's get it over with," Susie said. "This is so wrong."

The three were able to get on the email program.

"She arranged everything on files- go to the one that says "Friends."

They found several mysterious messages, like the one from "G. F."

_Hey Charlotte!_

_I'm sorry for taking SO LONG to reply to your emails. I'm just letting_

_you know that I've read them and I really like them, and that I _

_WILL write you not one, but many replies! Once I get over the _

_fact that Obama won!_

_Yay!_

_-R_

"That's from the month Obama won the election," Susie said. "Historic moment in American history."

_Hey Charlotte,_

_It's nice to hear from you. Wow, you got accepted to college! That's great!_

_What will you be studying there and when are you starting? I bet you're_

_really excited. I was extremely excited when I started film school over here. _

_I'm still on break right now. I'm going back to school for my second _

_semester in about 2 weeks. Talk about excitement!_

_I was going to visit New York during break but it didn't work out in the end. _

_Perhaps next time I'm off. It'd be nice if you were there so I could see you _

_too! How long has it been? I haven't forgotten that day when we were _

_on the steps of that church in Italy. That was very nice. Ah, there I go _

_again reminiscing..._

_Right, so Obama is the new president. That's really great. But I _

_wanted to hear from someone who's actually over there in America. _

_Behind all the idolizing. Tell me really, how is Obama? And what _

_do you think of him so far? I know it's too early to judge, but…_

_All the best,_

_-R_

_ "_Sounds like they were friends, Charlotte and whoever "R" is," Kimi said.

"Hey, Charlotte had been talking about the steps of the church in Italy! She mentioned she was with that Seth guy and his family!" Lil cried.

"Maybe "R" is related to Seth, maybe his son or daughter," Susie said

"Or niece or nephew."

"He or she must live far away, because it's implied they live outside of the US. They probably live in Britian or Australia or somewhere like that."

"He or she goes to film school, like Tommy. This person must be an aspiring filmmaker!" Kimi said.

"Great! And we just figured out who G. F. was!" groaned Lil.

Kimi sighed, as she closed the program and the laptop. "I'd better put this back where we found it, and forget we ever had this conversation."

"Got it," Susie and Lil agreed.

"And we have to have a talk with Charlotte."

"Right!"

* * *

Camilla and Charles cooked a scrumptious breakfast for the kids.

"Ooh. Ham sandwiches! French toast! Eggs and bacon! Paradise city!" Charlotte exclaimed.

"You got that right!" Phil cried.

"Dig in, bambini!" Charles said. "It is all for you to enjoy!"

"Thanks again for breakfast, Mr. and Ms. Muffret," Susie said.

"Oh. You all call us "Charles" and "Camilla." We are all friends here, no?"

"Yeah. We are all friends here."

Charlotte sighed, heavily, as she ate her breakfast.

Lil and Kimi exchanged looks and shrugged.

"Hey, Charlotte?" Kimi uttered.

"Yeah?"

"You wanna talk to me and Lil after breakfast?"

"Uh- why?"

"Well, we feel like we should."

"O-kay. Sure."

Breakfast finished and the three went down toward the family room.

"Charlotte- um- are you by any chance depressed about something?" Kimi started.

"I'm depressed about a ton of things actually."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really. Besides, in my experience, I never really talk about my problems anyway."

"It makes things worse for you it you don't talk to anyone-" Lil started.

"I don't need to talk about anything. I had no friends, no family that would understand me anyhow."

Lil then nudged Kimi.

"Charlotte, we also want to admit something."

Charlotte looked up. "What?"

"We- kinda- sorta- looked through your email last night."

"What? Why?"

"We're worried about you, is all. We're so sorry."

Charlotte hung her head. "No, I should be sorry. I seem to have worried everyone as usual. Besides, I should be honest, you know? I haven't been the best person on the planet, so I-"

She didn't even bother to finish.

"I'm going take a walk."

She got up and left the room, and toward the front door.

"Charlotte, wait!" Kimi and Lil chase after her.

"What? Ya'll STILL worried about me? Well, I'm sick and tired of people worrying about me! Why can't they worry about THEMSELVES, huh?"

Silence.

"I wanna be alone, 'kay?"

With that, Charlotte went back in the Muffret house and locked herself in her room. At least, she was allowed privacy in her room. At her parent's house, no matter what, she couldn't even lock her own door.

Kimi and Lil exchanged looks. They had to think of how to make that girl feel better about herself.

"Bambini!" Camilla cried from the kitchen. "I'm about to get lunch ready!"

"What happened?" Tommy and Chuckie noticed Kimi and Lil's glum faces.

"We screwed up," Lil only replied. "Big time."


	7. Love is Complicated Part I

Lunch was eaten in silence. Everyone seemed to enjoy Camila's light summer pasta.

"This pasta is good," Tommy broke the silence.

"You make pasta for lunch?" Angelica was being critical as usual.

"It is an Italian thing. We love eating," Camilla says.

"Huh. I never would have thought of it."

"You never think, period," Chuckie had the misfortune to point out.

"Can it, Finster!" Angelica hissed, and kicked him under the table.

"OW!"

"Where's the little one from North Carolina?" Charles wanted to know.

"She wanted to eat upstairs. Poor thing wants to be alone," Camilla shook her head, sadly.

"Should she be here to socialize with us?"

"Now, now, carino. We shouldn't pressure the child to be in a uncomfortable situation, no?"

"You're right, Milla. She could be okay by herself, I guess."

Kimi and Lil hung their heads. They knew that this was their fault.

"When I was a little girl-" Camilla started on a tale of her past in Italy, and the kids all listened in, eagerly.

Charlotte then appeared in the kitchen, in the sight of the others.

"Carlo, she is in the kitchen. Do not say anything, bambini," Camilla hissed, anxiously. "She'll feel discombobulated."

"Thanks for the pasta, Signora Montel- I mean Camilla. It was good," Charlotte then piped up.

"You like?"

"Yeah. It reminds me of when my uncle or mom cook pasta."

"They cook pasta? They're not Italian, are they?"

"Sadly, no. We're American."

"Ah! Of course."

"She feels pretty comfortable talking to Camilla," whispered Susie to the other girls.

"Well, of course. There are people that are more comfortable with people older or younger, but not with their peers," said Lil.

"I've actually been to Italy a couple times," Charlotte was telling Camilla and Charles.

"You have been? It is beautiful, no?" Charles said.

"Yeah. I love it."

"Why don't you come sit here by me, and tell us some stories about your travels?"

"They're not that interesting-"

"Ah- come on! We're dying to listen."

"Well, SOME of us are," muttered Angelica. Susie nudged her, annoyed.

"The first time was a two week trip to a little town just twenty miles north of Rome. We stayed at this villa that my uncle rented from a friend of his, the first time he'd rented it for a few years. We went several great restaurants, including a nice pizzeria, and went up to Rome for a show."

"A show?"

"A concert, by some indie artist you've never heard of."

"Ah- continue the story."

"I experienced a lot of firsts on that trip. My first international flight. My first time being outside of the US. My first trip to Italy. My first authentic Italian meal. My first culture shock. My first time at the hot spa. My first experience with Italian. My first- love."

There was silence, especially when she said "My first love."

"His name was Rudá Tallbott. He was the son of my uncle Jim's good friend Seth Tallbott, with whom he had a love-hate relationship. He may not be Italian, but he was Brazilian-American and the most- attractive of all the boys I knew. It was the first time I ever felt that way about anyone, and I- blew it! Big time!"

She started crying, as she got up and left.

Everyone was now silent and shocked. Even Angelica was speechless.

* * *

"Unrequited love is the most painful, I believe," Chuckie was saying. "I know, 'cuz I've been through it."

"Two words, Chuck," Phil said. "Nicole. Boscarelli."

"Phil!" Kimi hissed in a warning tone.

The nine were gathered in the family room in the "basement" floor. Charlotte, for once, was in the room with the others, but with her head hung down in embarrassment and humiliation.

"The worst part of all this, was I only saw him, but two times. The first time in Italy, and the second here in New York, four years ago."

"Are you now exchanging emails?" Lil asked, remembering the mystery messages.

"We- used to. Now I haven't heard from him, since last July, almost a year ago."

"That's so sad."

"How's your love lives?" Charlotte then changed the subject.

Tommy and Lil and Phil and Kimi both exchanged looks with each other.

***Flashback (June 2007)***

Tommy was walking the halls of Dreslen High School, the last day of junior year. He was looking for- her. Many things ran through his mind, especially that of Lillian Jill Marie DeVille. After seventeen years of being close friends, was he positive that maybe, just maybe, there was a connection? Come on, it COULD happen! Somehow he knew that Lil had feelings for him. Now, he has to make the move, before summer break even starts.

He thought of Rachel and the first time he had experienced this glorious but painful thing called love. How did that work out? She moves away, and he screwed it all up with her. Maybe that was meant to be, somehow. He'd liked Rachel very much, must definitely loved her at some point, but Lil was different. They're _best friends_, for Pete's sake. Since they were _babies. _Their moms are best friends, and Phil (other than Chuckie) was Tommy's closest pal.

He spots her, by her locker, must likely getting ready to head out of school.

All right, Pickles. Don't screw this up, now.

"Hey, Lil."

"Tommy!" her face lights up, at his presence. "Are you heading out?"

"Yeah. Um, Lil? I was wondering if you'd like to hang out, later tonight, just you and me."

"Um- sure. Java Lava?"

"I was thinking more like dinner at a decent restaurant, and perhaps a walk through the park. You know, sorta like a date?"

Oh, please say yes. Please, please, please!

"All right. Pick me up at seven?"

"Okay. see ya, then."

Tommy left the school, thinking that it could be the beginning of more to come.

Lil shut her locker, deep in thought.

She smiled to herself. She had been infatuated for a while now, and she never believed that he would just come up and ask her out like that.

Maybe it's just what Tommy would do.

And that was good enough for her.

***End of Flashback***

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Tommy. You and Lil went on a casual date and you two ended up in serious relationship?" Charlotte was bewildered at the story just told.

The group was actually smaller, so that only Charlotte, Tommy, Phil, Lil and Kimi were in the family room talking.

"Yeah," Tommy replied. "We really got a chance to know things about each other, that we wouldn't have before."

"I liked him for a while, back when we were starting at high school," Lil was also explaining. "I didn't say anything before, 'cuz I was afraid that it would destroy our friendship."

"Especially if you guys broke up or something," Charlotte finished.

"Yeah, but it turned out not as bad as I feared. After all, we lasted two years."

"Three years in late June," Tommy pointed out.

"Wow! That's pretty long for a high school-college relationship."

She then turned to Phil and Kimi, "What about you two?"

Phil sighed. "It ain't no fairy tale romance, that's for sure."


	8. Love is Complicated Part II

***Flashback (May 2009)***

It was a typical May night, the time of year that college students long for, the end of spring semester, and the start of a three and a half month long period called "summer break." Some people weren't so happy. Take for instance the two long-time friends, the immature slacker DeVille twin and the spunky Japanese Finster girl in a residence hall common room. They had no intention of ending up this way, tired, ragged, in the same room in the res hall on the campus where Phil attended college in San Francisco.

What in the hell was Phil thinking?

"Aren't you gonna say anything?" the girl glares at him, angrily.

"What do you want me to say?"

Kimi sighs heavily. "I didn't come here at eleven at night to hear you say that."

"When are you going to learn, Phil? When are you gonna learn to be serious in something, huh?"

He doesn't say anything.

"Thirteen months! Thirteen months of "dating," and you treat it like some casual thing. We break up. We get back together. We break up again. We get back together _again_. Frankly, this way isn't working out."

"We're breaking up again?"

"What do you think, Phil? You think I _want _to be in a relationship like this?"

Silence. A couple passerby students appear from the outside and pass by the lounge and walk right toward the dorms.

"I'm tired of this. I'm tired of being uncertain about- things. We've been friends for a real long time. We were so _happy, _back in those days-"

She means in middle school, when things were easy.

"Now look at us."

Phil sighed. "Why did we get together in the first place?"

"I don't- know," Kimi's fury cooled, and she became more glum.

More silence.

"Hey, Kimi!" Lil called from outside. "We're going!"

"Good bye, Phil."

She goes to meet up with Lil.

No! Phil was thinking. You can't leave! He really screwed up now. The ultimate way. The saying (if there is such a saying) "Love can get you when you least expect it," applied here. Phil, the immature twin, the socially-inept, awkward twin, was in LOVE with this girl, and he had done what exactly? Nothing.

Well, what to do now. Run after her? Admit why he had led her on for thirteen months?

Yep. It was the only way to make his life- not miserable. Now, he had to stop her from going out clubbing with Lil and her other friends.

"Kimi! KIMI, wait!" Phil ran outside toward the parking lot, where the students kept their cars.

Kimi saw him running toward her. She then told Lil and the other two girls to wait in the car…

"Don't go," Phil managed to say.

"What?"

"Don't leave. I'm- sorry."

Kimi didn't move.

"Phil- what do you have to say now? It's all done for."

"No. Look, I've messed up, okay? For the last thirteen months, I've done everything possible to screw up what we had going for us. Honestly, I never thought I would even care about- love. I always thought that Lil- she always had better luck at it than I would.

"That was before-"

Kimi didn't say anything, through this long-winded apology. She had to give him props, though. Last year popped in her mind. She remembered when the two went out with their friends to a club in San Francisco for spring break. They had danced, and later kissed. Kimi then saw through Phil's immaturity and saw romance. A connection. Later the next month, they started dating. Then, everything went to pieces…

"Kimi, I love you."

"W-what did you say?"

"I love you. I mean that, seriously. I never felt- this way before about anyone. The reason why I never let it known, was because I'm- scared."

"Scared?"

"Yeah. I'm going all Chuckie on you. But seriously, I was scared that I'd take advantage of you and I would take us for granted."

"Phil, I had no idea."

"Are you coming or not?" Lil cried from the parking lot.

"In a minute!"

The two then hug.

"Hey, I know you'll say no, but I'd like for us to start over," Phil then said. "I mean, really. I want to prove to you that I'm- mature and beyond - who I was."

"I see no problem with that."

"Um- see you around?"

"Yeah. I'll be around."

He watched her go back toward his sister and their friends. Maybe a second chance will be possible after all.

***End of Flashback***

"Whoa! That's pretty intense," Charlotte exclaimed.

"Hey, what can you say? We're intense people, I guess," Phil shrugged. "After hearing that, you'd probably be surprised that we're still together."

"I'm surprised myself," Kimi quipped.

"I wonder where the others went to?" Tommy then said.

"Hey, Char?" Lil then said, using Charlotte's usual "nickname" for the first time. "What are you planning on doing this evening?"

"I dunno. Listening to music in my room. It is Saturday, right?"

"Yeah," Kimi said. "Well, since it is Saturday, maybe Lil, you and I can go out clubbing somewhere in the city."

"Clubbing? I've never- but I always wanted to. You seriously want _me _ to come along?"

"Yeah. You're our friend, right? And friends go out together and hang out."

Charlotte lit up with this. Friend?

"Sure! Um- that'll be great."

The kids then leave the family room and went toward the living room, where Camilla was knitting some kind of sweater.

"Bambini!"

"Camilla, can we go out clubbing tonight?" Charlotte then asked.

"Clubbing?" Camillia exclaimed. "Meraviglioso idea!"

"We'll take a taxi there and back. We'll stay together the whole time, and we'll have our cells on hand, just in case we gotta call you," Kimi said.

"Eccellente! You leave after dinner, no?"

"Yeah. At seven. We'll plan to be back here a little after midnight."

"Okay. It is decided!"

The kids spent the time before dinner, relaxing. Charlotte, in turn, was in her room, laptop open and on, with Kimi and Lil discussing the possible outfits and club venue that they would go to.

They hear noises, like of giggling and laughter.

"What in God's name is _that_?" Charlotte demands.

"No idea," Lil said. "It's probably one of the others."

"Who could it be? Tommy, Phil and Dil are playing Wii video games in the den."

"That leaves Angelica, Susie and Chuckie."

The three exchanged looks.

They then sneaked to where the noises came from.

"It's coming from Chuckie's room," Charlotte whispered, urgently.

"Chuckie? What could he be doing in there?" Lil wondered.

"I have no idea," Kimi said. "And I'm sure that I don't want to know."

"Okay," Lil said. "I'll open the door."

She puts her hand on the handle, turns it, and opens it slowly. The three are stunned at what they found.

Chuckie Finster was _spooning with Angelica Pickles._

"I-I can explain!" Chuckie was obviously nervous.

"Explain what you are doing- with- with HER?" Kimi was irate now.

Charlotte and Lil sighed, and shook their heads.

"Let's get everyone together in the family room," sighed Charlotte.

***Flashback (October 2008)***

He hadn't planned at attending college in Santa Barbara. Especially not with her. The girl who had ridiculed him for years, ever since they were mere toddlers. Now the two are them were in the same English class, working on some project _together. _That meant three weeks of senseless arguing and yelling, which led to a mediocre grade. Angelica, of course, didn't care. Chuckie, on the other hand, was beside himself.

The two had the ultimate confrontation in Chuckie's dorm. The roommate was out, doing something or other so they'd be no witnesses…

"Why'd you want to meet up with me, Finster?" Angelica demanded, upon first entering the room.

"You caused me a possible flunking!"

"What?"

"The English project, Angelica! We spent all that time arguing and fighting, and that meant that we couldn't complete the project the way we should have and we got a-"

"We got a C. What's the big deal?" Angelica just shrugged. "We passed, didn't we?"

"Passed?! We're lucky we did pass!"

"Geez, Finster. No need to freak out over this."

"That's the problem with you, isn't it? You just slide by, expecting everything to just come easy for you? Well, face facts! Life is NOT easy!"

"Whatever," Angelica said. "Look, I gotta meet up with Tiff. We're going to the mall, to get our nails done and stuff."

"Go ahead! Once next semester comes around, I'll transfer to San Francisco! I should have never have come here, if I had to deal with _you _mocking me and deriding me, every time you see me!"

"Why are you here then?"

"Why are _you _here? You could care less about your future."

"So what? You care too much."

"I loathe you."

"I loathe you more."

"Slacker."

"Geek!"

"Tramp!"

"Loser!"

"Bite me!"

Silence.

"Why did you come here?" Angelica uttered.

"What?" Chuckie was still irate.

"Why are you here and not at San Francisco?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Just because. Why ask that question?"

"Well, I just find it _weird _that you'd choose to go to the same school as me, considering you hate me."

"First of all, Angelica, it's none of your business. Second of all, don't you have to go to the mall now?"

"Screw that. I just- won't leave until you tell me why you are at this college."

"Okay. You might as well stay _all _night, because I'm not telling you anything!"

"Okay, if that's what you want, Finster."

Angelica then sat in Chuckie's desk chair.

His thoughts ran.

Well, there you go again, Chuckie. You're letting her play those games, she oh so loves to play with you. What now? He can't possibly tell her how he'd felt that year; senior year in high school, when Angelica was already in college, and how he'd- gulp- missed her.

"Angelica?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I just say something?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

"Promise me you won't laugh or freak out or-"

"Just say what you have to say, Finster!"

"I missed you."

"_What?_"

"I missed how you made fun of me. I missed the way you spoke to me in that annoyed voice. I missed you- being around."

Angelica was speechless.

"Oh. Wow."

"So, you must think that I'm a total loser now."

"Well, yeah. But the thing is, Chuckie, I kinda- sorta missed you too."

Whoa, did she just call him Chuckie?

"You did?"

"Sure. It wasn't any fun not having you to make fun of. This place is a real bore. It was kinda nice to have someone that I knew come here too."

"Then how come you kept ridiculing me in front of those "friends" of yours? You know instead of simply being _nice_?"

"Please. I didn't want them to know that I'm friendly with a total dork."

"Good point."

"Well, I better hurry. Don't wanna keep Tiff waiting."

She goes to leave.

"Angelica, wait!"

"Yeah?"

"I won't transfer from here. I'll stay."

She smiles. "Good. I'll see you around campus, Fins- I mean Chuck."

"See ya."

***End of Flashback***

"So, he and I started "seeing each other" the following fall semester," Angelica was finishing up her story. "So, what are you gonna do about it? Punish me for not telling you sooner?"

"We weren't gonna tell anyone at all-" Chuckie said.

"Zip it, you!"

"Okay! It's zipped."

"But why, you guys?" Tommy wanted to know. "Why keep it a secret?"

"For obvious reasons. But in all seriousness, we didn't know how it was gonna go, so we agreed to not tell anyone about it. I mean- Susie knows, and obviously our parents have an idea about it-"

"We get it," Kimi said, curtly. "But I am his _sister._"

"Okay, okay! We were wrong!" Angelica then capitulated. "But at least everyone knows."

"Uh-huh-" Dil said.

Charlotte meanwhile, was getting past this. She of course was going out clubbing with friends _she _made, for the first time in her life...

* * *

**_Although this fic is not a romance whatsoever, c__hapters 6 and 7 focused mainly on love and relationships. Couples introduced were Tommy/Lil, Chuckie/Angelica (only just revealed to all their friends), Phil/Kimi, Rudá/Charlotte (not mutual), Harold/Susie (Dil, like Charlotte, has yet to find love). Okay, moving on. Hope it didn't suck too much. I'm not that good at romance** _


	9. Bonding with the Rugrats

After dinner ended, Charlotte, Lil and Kimi got themselves ready to go out. Camilla, Charles, and the boys were seeing them off.

"You gals have fun now, you hear?" Charles said.

"Be careful!" Camilla cried.

"Don't accept rides from strangers!" Phil cried.

"Don't leave your drinks unattended!" Tommy added.

"Stay together!" Chuckie cried, "And don't let each other out of your sights."

"Boys, quit worrying," Kimi rolled her eyes, "We'll be fine."

"I hope," Charlotte muttered.

"Let's go, guys!"

The three left to hail a cab to find the eighteen and over club they had agreed on checking out.

If only _he_ was here with them…

"So you've never been clubbing before?" Lil said.

"Nope. Plus, I never had friends to go with."

Kimi smiles and puts her arm around Charlotte's shoulders. "You do now."

"Yeah. I guess."

As they made their way to the nightclub, Charlotte did some thinking. She actually remembered pretty much the last conversation she had with Seth and Nicole during that night…

It was on the last night of September during her uncle James's sixtieth birthday, she knew, at Masa Restaurant. She was sixteen, and _he _a bit older. By then, she had the idea that they couldn't be more than friends, but was still infatuated. Just a bit. The group, which included herself, her mom, her uncle, and of course the Tallbotts were walking out of the Time Warner Center, saying their goodbyes at around two in the morning. Charlotte had mentioned her wish of returning to New York and Nicole had said that she was invited to come back to visit for a little bit longer and stay in their house. She had also mentioned that she had wanted to take Rudá clubbing, but couldn't as of yet (he would turn seventeen a few days later). Her face had lightened, she would've got to see him again _and _she knew that somehow she would friends to club with.

Sadly, the next year brought a great tragedy to the Tallbotts, leading Rudá to be sent to live with Tereza, his maybe crazy Brazilian mother who couldn't seem to keep a long term career. Tete would soon move him to Sydney, Australia, so she could get a job and he could attend film school. In the almost four years that elapsed, Charlotte learned (mostly from James, who couldn't stand Nicole at times) that Nicole was not the sweet, funny, kind woman that she made her out to be. In fact, Nicole was downright insane, hopelessly obsessed with her ten years younger stepson, which led him to go nuts himself and move away from the US, the rest of his family…

And from Charlotte.

Her dreams of a friendship with her former crush were dashed.

However, she now felt just as happy at a dinky eighteen and over nightclub, clubbing with her two new friends. They danced until one in the morning, and hailed a taxi back to the Muffret's house.

"That was fun, wasn't it?" Kimi then said to Lil and Charlotte.

"The best."

"If you think _that _ was fun, wait 'till we're twenty-one," Lil said.

"Twenty-one? So we'd get in to _all_ of the nightclubs?"

"Heck yeah! These ones that let eighteen or older in basically play the crappy Top 40 music."

"They played _some _ dance music."

"Yeah, _some._ In fact hardly any," Kimi was also complaining.

"I wished we lived in Europe," Charlotte sighed. "House and trance music is _huge_ over there, _and_ you can go clubbing when you're like _sixteen_."

"Sixteen?! Seriously?!"

"Yeah. If you can drink at sixteen, you can certainly get in any club."

"Wow."

"Sadly none of the three times I've been to Italy, was I able to go clubbing. I was stuck with the _geezers, _the entire time."

"Your mom and uncle?"

"Bingo."

The three sighed, heavily.

"Just laying around on that _stupid _beach," Charlotte was grumbling to herself.

The girls arrive back at the Muffrets. They let themselves in with the extra key that Camilla gave them.

The house was pretty much silent.

"Huh. Everybody must be in bed now," Lil said.

"Well, it _is_ one-fifteen in the morning," yawned Charlotte. "Speaking of bed, let's turn in, eh?"

"Yeah. Let's," sighed Kimi.

They then went in their respective rooms and went to bed. As Charlotte tried to fall asleep, she remembered the last time she saw _him_. If only all those things wouldn't have happened, and if only she could have been a better friend to him. Things could have been different.

Or not.

* * *

May was just about over, and the Muffrets allowed the kids to go to Central Park. Angelica and Susie decided to pass, they were to go shopping with Camilla back at the Upper East Side. Charles was to stay home, to work.

The kids walk though the paths of Central Park, stopping by a hotdog stand on the way.

"Man, this hotdog is something else!" Phil exclaimed.

"It's an authentic New York style hotdog, hot from the stand. Even my uncle James, who lives for fancy Asian meals, loves this," Charlotte was musing.

"Maybe on the way back, we can get some real authentic New York ice cream," Lil quipped.

"Yum! I'm all for it!"

The kids then talked of their vacation so far.

"Well, it'll be three weeks this Friday, since we came here," Tommy said.

"A lot has happened, since then," Kimi said. "We went clubbing a few times, went out to a great Asian restaurant, went to the Met, we're now just in Central Park, and found out that my brother is dating the Girl from Hell."

Chuckie groaned.

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Charlotte said.

"Really? The girl that made fun of us our _whole _lives is "seeing" _my _brother, who I believed hated her for all eternity!"

"Okay, maybe it is that bad. But I have a worse scenario."

"What?"

"How about realizing that you've caused your once "soul-mate" to become gay, like your awesomely cool uncle?"

"Say what?" the others turn to her.

"I'm not gonna talk about it, until I'm up to it."

"Which is-" Phil said.

"Never."

"Oh."

There was silence among the kids, as they got to a playground.

"Ah, the playground! There were some good times, I tell ya," Phil was now musing about the past.

"We had some good times playing in the sandbox," Tommy was saying. "Playing with our toys, going on adventures-"

"Chuckie, of course, was scared of everything all the time."

Chuckie groaned, embarrassed.

"You know what I used to love about the playground?" Charlotte was now saying.

"What?" Lil said.

"I used to love swinging up high, on the swings. I used to pretend that I was flying- flying away to a better place, a peaceful place where all people of all ages, races, religions, ethnic groups, and sexualities can live together in peace, love and happiness."

"Whoa. That's deep," Dil said.

As the kids walked back toward the Upper West Side, stopping by for some ice cream, Charlotte was deep in thought again.

She'll be okay as long as she got these six as her friends, even if she never sees Rudá Tallbott again for the rest of her life.


	10. Meeting Up With The Tallbotts

**_Our friends meet the Tallbott family (including that of Io Tallbott, who will be a recurring character in the Outcast Series) minus Rudá in this chapter. Note: This is a light gay-friendly chapter. No bashing, 'kay. That'll be all.**_

* * *

June came, and summer was in the air, even in New York.

That meant the end of basketball season, in terms of the NBA, so Charlotte could devote herself totally to developing her friendship with Tommy, Chuckie, Phil, Lil, Kimi, Dil, Susie and Angelica. Although she liked hanging out with all of them, Charlotte found herself more comfortable with the six closest to her age, and more attached to Lil and Kimi. They weren't just clubbing companions. They were people to confide to, whenever Charlotte needed to talk about something, other girls that could help her in the many things the Charlotte wasn't experienced in, such as boys and how to deal with them.

As for Camilla and Charles, Charlotte and the other kids adored them, even Angelica grew to love the wacky Italian-English couple. Charlotte, however, felt more of a bond to them, than the other kids. Actually Charlotte looked to them as second parents, or even better- as the godparents she never had.

June fourteenth came, and Charlotte felt like she had to go and see Uncle James, Seth, Kurt or somebody.

She was able to get her chance to go see them…

"Hey, Char? You wanna walk around the city with us?" Kimi offered. She and Lil were obviously ready to leave the house.

"Sure. Maybe we can walk to someone's place, and drop by."

"You mean visit your uncle James?" Lil wondered.

"Maybe. Or visit Kurt Thompson or-"

"Seth Tallbott?" Kimi finished.

"Yes," Charlotte hung her head. "We don't have t-"

"We'd love to!" Kimi then cried. "We'd love to meet everyone!"

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Who would you two want to meet first?"

"Seth Tallbott," Kimi and Lil both said, simultaneously.

"The Tallbotts it is," Charlotte sighed. "Are the others coming with?"

"Chuckie and Angelica are doing God knows what, Susie's Skypeing with Harold, and the other boys are playing with the Wii."

"Guess, it's just the three of us."

"Yes. We better get going."

With that, the three said their goodbyes to Camilla and Charles.

"If you by any chance meet up with some old friends of yours, Charlotte, you have my permission to invite them to dinner on Friday. Charles and I- would just _love _to meet them."

"Thanks, Camilla. You're the best."

"Aw, you are sweeting."

"Come on. We'd better get going," Lil said.

"What shall we do?" Kimi said, as the three girls were heading away from the Muffret house. "Take a taxi or go on the subway?"

"The subway?"

"Yeah. You've been?"

"Yeah. A couple times. Since James lives in Harlem, he sometimes has to take the subway to the lower area of Manhattan and back, when he doesn't want to take the taxi. Besides, the intersection of Manhattan and 122nd isn't that far from here," Charlotte said.

"Good point. We're just thirteen or so blocks from there."

"Let us go."

We they went, all the way up toward the Morningside/ Harlem area of the city. As they got closer to Manhattan Avenue, Charlotte got increasingly nervous.

"Are you nervous, Char?" Kimi wonders.

"Hell yeah."

"Are you scared about something?" Lil asked.

"I'm frickin' scared that Seth and Nicole, right when they see me, will call up James, which will lead him to put me on a plane back to North Carolina."

"He wouldn't do that! Would he?"

"You never know with Seth."

"Huh."

They finally arrive at the Tallbott residence, pretty similar to the Muffret's brownstone house, but less glamourous.

"Well, here we are. I think."

"Go up and knock on the door."

"Oh- not without you guys."

"Okay, okay. We're comin'."

Charlotte, Lil and Kimi stood right in front of the house, and Charlotte nervously knocks on the door.

She then sighed, heavily.

A man older than Charlotte's parents and the Muffrets, and about the same age as the Rugrats' parents answered the door.

"Hello? Who is there?"

He then sees Charlotte among the group.

"C-Charlotte! You're here! From North Carolina! Are your mom and uncle here with you?" Seth Tallbott looks anxiously for them, ignoring Kimi and Lil.

"No, it's just me and my new friends-" Charlotte motions at the two other girls with her. "Kimi Finster and Lil DeVille."

"Hey," Lil uttered.

"Konnichiwa," Kimi said, nervously.

"Guys, this is Seth Tallbott."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Seth said. "Why don't you three come in?"

"Uh-sure."

Seth then leads them to the house, was was pretty nice, for a "less glamourous" house.

"Geez, you came all the way from North Carolina, all by _yourself_?" Seth was saying. They were sitting in the living room.

"Uh- yeah? I'm here on vacation."

"You're finished with school for the year?"

"Yep."

Charlotte was tempted to ask about Rudá, but she keep silent on that subject.

"Seth, dear? Who was at the door?" a woman with a strong German accent echoed from the other room.

Well so much for asking about _him_.

"It's Charlotte, and she brought a couple of friends."

Nicole Rauscher, Seth's current wife and business partner entered the living room.

"Charlotte! You are here!"

"Yeah. Hey," Charlotte said, a little nervous. Deep inside, she knew the woman was trouble and she had to tread lightly.

"And you brought friends? From college?"

"Uh- no. We don't go to the same school."

"Where'd you meet, then?" Seth wondered.

"We met at the airport," Kimi piped up.

"The airport?"

"Yeah."

"Wow. Interesting."

"Does your mom know you're here?" Nicole then asked Charlotte. "Who are you staying with? James?"

"Mom knows. I'm here with Kimi, Lil and some other friends I met at the airport. We're staying with Charles Muffret and Camilla Montello, who know James through mutual friends in Italy."

"Hmm. Montello. Yes, I believe the name is familiar, but I have no recollection of ever knowing them," Seth said.

The girls shrug. "Camilla said she only meet my uncle a few times, and that she doesn't know him very well."

"Seth, you better get to the kitchen and tend to our lunch," Nicole then told Seth.

Seth left for the kitchen.

She then told the three. "We're having Io and Katie over for lunch. Seth is making a delicious pasta."

Probably won't even compare to Camilla's, thought Charlotte. She shook her head, remembering the indirect "rivalry" her mom and Seth have on making the best meals for James.

"Who's Io?" Lil then whispered.

"Seth's daughter. And Katie's her girlfriend."

"Cool!"

Charlotte smiled at this. She had told the Rugrats a lot about her gay uncle, and they seemed to be more than fine about the "gay subject." Especially since they live in California…

"So, you met at the airport?" Nicole was attempting to make conversation. "That's grand."

"Yeah. Camilla's relatives are friends of ours," Lil said. "Camilla had wanted us to get together, I guess."

"So you didn't meet by chance? Wow."

"Yeah. Wow."

Seth returned with a few glasses of water.

"Thanks, Mr. Tallbott," Kimi was a little less nervous.

"You're welcome, and call me "Seth."

"Sure thing."

"So there are others?" Nicole then asked.

"Yeah. My brother Chuckie, my boyfriend Phil, Lil's boyfriend Tommy, Tommy's brother Dil, their cousin Angelica and our good friend Susie."

"Quite a lot."

"We deal with it. The house is big enough."

They then laugh, and a lot of the uneasiness was gone.

Someone then knocked on the door.

"Oh, that must be them!" Nicole exclaimed.

"I got it," Kimi offered. She then made her way to the door, with Charlotte and Lil following nervously behind.

Kimi opens the door and…

"Hi!"

A perky young woman with longish dark brown hair rushes in with a small terrier dog, all snug in her arms.

"You must be Io, Seth's daughter," Kimi then uttered.

"Uh- Kimi. That's actually Katie," Charlotte then said. "And Dillan."

"What? Then who's-?"

"What up? What up?" another young woman with short cropped boyish hair appears behind.

"_That's _Io."

"Oh- oh my God. I'm so sorry," Kimi realized her faux pas.

Io sees Charlotte.

"Charlotte! What are you doing here?"

"I'm on vacation!"

"Oh- hello, you two," Nicole greets the two newcomers. "Come in the living room. Seth is just getting lunch on the table. Charlotte?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you and your friends like to join us?"

"Uh- sure. If we're not a burden."

"No, no. There is plenty for everyone."

"'Kay."

Kimi, on the other hand, was still apologizing to Io and Katie.

"What's with her?" Io asked Charlotte.

"That's Kimi Finster, one of my new friends. Uh- she made a faux pas. She thought that Katie was you-"

"Again, I'm _so _sorry!"

"It's cool. Pleasure to meet you."

"Ditto."

"Lunch time!" Seth called from the kitchen.

"Let's eat!" Lil said.

"Right behind ya," Charlotte and Kimi then follow Lil toward the dining room, with the others right behind.


	11. A Needed Heart To Heart

Charlotte, Lil and Kimi were walking back from the Tallbotts.

"That lunch went pretty well," Charlotte said.

"Considering that I practically humiliated myself back there," Kimi sighed.

"Kimi-" Lil started.

"It's okay. Look, I met Io way back five years ago and she looked totally different back then. I had to get used to it too," Charlotte tried to cheer Kimi up.

"Yeah, but _I _was so stupid! I mean, I know like tons of people in the LGBT community that are like that and I can't-" Kimi kept going.

"Dude, it's okay. It has _nothing _to do with _that_ fact."

"What about Rudá?"

"What about him?"

"Isn't he- you know-"

Charlotte sighed at that. "I don't know for sure, Kimi. Things are so mixed up when it comes to him. Io, I can handle and feel comfortable with, 'cuz she reminds me of my uncle Jim, in the female way of course. _Him, _I'm not so sure of."

"What do you mean?" the girls had just gotten back on the Muffrets' block.

"Well- I guess I'll tell you."

"Okay-"

"When I met Rudá for the first time, five years ago in Italy, I had a crush on him right?"

"Right?"

"Well, James comes right out, the fall after, and tells me that he already had a girlfriend at that time and that he's too _sophisticated _for me."

"Ooh. I'm sorry. Were you disappointed?"

"Well, yeah! But I don't think that I was his type anyway, even though he's definitely mine. Besides, it was for the best."

"Oh sure. Of course."

The three went in the house and went up to Charlotte's room, where they finished their conversation.

"Than what?" Lil wonders.

"The next year, the summer before I see him again, I find out that he and his girlfriend broke up, _and _that he graduated from high school with no one really caring about it."

"Damn! Must have been a _really _hard year for him."

"Yeah, but the next year, it was worse. He basically went nuts and- I think he may have threatened Seth and Nicole's lives- he moved away to Australia for film school."

"Then what happened? Something about being gay-?"

"Last year- he visited New York-"

Charlotte got up and got her laptop.

"Read this-"

She directed at once again- another email message, dated from some time last July.

_Hey Charlotte,_

_I'm coming to New York on the 20th! Maybe we could get together if you're in town!_

_All the best,_

_Ruda_

"I so wanted to go there, to see him, you know?"

"And did you?" Kimi wondered, even though she may know the answer.

"No. I did not. I was stuck in the dang South, and you know what the worse thing was?"

"What?"

"James visited me and the 'rents, while he was visiting Seth and Nicole and told us what Nicole did while he visited them-"

"What did she do?" Kimi asked.

"Well, James got a call from Seth asking him to come by to see Rudá and all. He goes, and everything seemed fine.

"But then Rudá had to leave the room, and do you know what Nicole said?"

"What?"

"She told James in this desperate, crazed tone that he had been attempting- to hook up with other guys!"

Charlotte starts crying again. "She told my uncle about his "personal life" behind his back!"

"That phony, screwed up shrew!" Lil cried. "That is so-"

"At least, my faux pas was like normal- and not disturbing and personal!" Kimi said. It was evident that Kimi and Lil were believing that Nicole was the bad guy here, and not James.

Thank the Lord.

"There's more. Read _this _message after I wrote back apologizing that I couldn't come up here and I started reminiscing about our meeting in Italy again-"

Kimi and Lil obeyed.

_Hey Charlotte,_

_Yes, that Italy trip was great. That sfizio pizza was unforgettable! _

_I'm in New York for about six more days. It's been great. Coming from a quiet place like Australia, New York is really exciting._

_Film School is going great. I'll hopefully go back to it as soon as I arrive in Australia._

_I'm sorry we couldn't see each other this time, but hopefully next time! Actually, we should all go to Italy again! Or somewhere else..._

_Au revoir,_

_-R_

"Well. I guess, now we know who "R" is," Lil sighed.

Charlotte resumed sobbing.

"Char? Char. It's okay. Every-thing's gonna be all right," Kimi was comforting her.

"We'll help you get through this," Lil was also comforting Charlotte.

"I think that Nicole was making that up," Kimi said. "At least I think so."

"I hope so, Kimi. I hope so."

Charlotte had to feel good too. Although, the subject matter was awful, she had trusted in Kimi and Lil by confiding in them about her Rudá problems, something she had never been able to do.

Charlotte felt glad to have met them.

* * *

Charlotte then told the Muffrets that she had invited Seth and Nicole for dinner on Friday.

"I wanted Io and Katie to come too, but they had plans and they said they could take a rain-check."

"That is fine, my dear," Camilla smiled. "I will be delighted to have Seth and Nicole for dinner this Friday."

Hah, wait 'till you _really_ get to know them.

"What's this about people coming?" Angelica was wanting to know. All nine kids were gathered in the family room.

"They're friends of mine and Uncle James', Seth Tallbott and Nicole Rauscher. So you all have to behave."

"Yeah, yeah. What's the catch?"

"Come _on, _Angelica. Let's be serious here," Kimi said.

"I am being serious, _Kimi._"

Kimi's eyes narrowed. "Watch it. You're already on thin ice, because of the Chuckie situation."

"Ugh. I said I was sorry."

"Guys! Focus!" Lil cried. "We all have to dress up and make a good impression on those people. Okay?"

"Okay. Sure thing."

"And no pranks. _Phil. Dil._"

Phil and Dil, the designated pranksters, groaned.

"Let's get this show on the road," Tommy said.

"More like the week on the road," Charlotte sighed.


	12. Dinner With the Tallbotts

The week went along swiftly and Friday came along in no time.

The under-21s hung out in the family room, talking about the ever looming dinner with Seth and Nicole. Luckily everyone looked presentable, even plain Jane Charlotte.

"So a warning to _all _of you," Charlotte said. "If Nicole talks to you, you be polite and nice to her. And tread lightly, since she has a lot of issues, okay?"

"We're prepared," Tommy said. "If we can handle Coco LaBouche (as babies), we can surely handle a whacked out German woman."

"Good point," Charlotte remembered the story about the evil French woman who had tried to marry Chuckie's widower dad, so that she would get a promotion, however the kids (as toddlers) stopped her and a little later, Kimi's mom married Chuckie's dad.

"The guests -are here!" Camilla called from upstairs.

"Come along, everyone," Charlotte then said to the others.

They then went upstairs to see that Camilla had just let in Seth and Nicole, also in formal clothing.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Signor Muffret and Signora Montello," Seth was saying, his charming side noticeable.

"Likewise. Come meet the others-"

Everyone was all introduced.

"Angelica, Tommy and Dil Pickles, the twins Phil and Lil DeVille, Chuckie and Kimi Finster, Susie Carmichael, and of course your old friend, Charlotte Handel."

"Yes, and we got acquainted with Kimi and Lil over there."

"Eccelente! Charles, you help the others keep the guests entertained, while I get dinner finished, eh?"

"Eh," Charles answered, waving her off. He then kept mumbling that he wasn't an entertainer and all.

"Eh, yourself."

Camilla then left for the kitchen.

"There's like plenty of room in the family room," Kimi then offered to the Tallbotts. "We can all get acquainted in there."

"No thanks," Angelica said. "Susie and I are a little busy with something."

The others glare at her, for that.

"Oh, that is too bad. Will you be here for dinner?" Nicole wondered.

"Yeah, we'll be here."

"Come on, Carmichael," she then said to Susie.

Susie then sighed heavily. "Angelica-"

The two were gone upstairs within a second.

"Guess it's just us," said Phil. "We're more fun than they are anyway."

Seth and Nicole then followed the others to the family room.

"This house is lovely," Nicole commented. "You like it here?"

"Yeah," Charlotte smiled. "It's beautiful, and it's even better when I have these guys to spend my vacation with."

"They are lovely kids, aren't they?" Seth said. He then asked the others, "Where are you all from?"

"We're all from California, near the San Francisco area."

"Oh, we have some from friends from there," Nicole said.

"Katie, herself, is from that area," Seth added.

"Cool. Small world," Tommy said.

"You all have been friends since practically birth, is that right?" Seth then asked.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Charlotte mentioned that you went to school with Yo-Yo Ma," Kimi then mentioned.

"That's true, but we never speak anymore."

"Cuz he's famous and all?"

"Pretty much. In all fairness, we were just classmates. Nothing more."

"All right. What do you do?"

"Nicole and I run a textile business. Basically picking up some of the old family business."

"Seth's parents used to run a textile business way back in the fifties and sixties," Charlotte then pointed out.

"So you were born here in New York City?" Lil asked.

"I was, but Nicole was from the Freiberg area in Germany, where I actually met her and started working together."

And got involved romantically.

"We met Charlotte, like five years ago in Italy- at a villa that James was renting from a friend of ours. Her mom was there too. We all had fun together, right?" Seth then turned his attention to Charlotte.

She, in turn, waited in vain for Seth to mention _him_ throughout the conversation.

"Yup. Tons," was all she said.

The others stared at her worriedly.

"Dinner!" Camilla cried from upstairs.

"Well, time to eat!" Phil cried.

* * *

It was only fifteen minutes into dinner, when Camilla asked about Seth's family.

"I have two kids. One of them, Io, couldn't make it to dinner tonight."

"I heard she's a lovely and talented young artist, perhaps?" Charles said.

"Yes. Already organized two group shows, one in Philly and one in San Francisco, earlier this year."

"What about the other one?" Camilla asked of him, without missing a beat.

"Ah, Rudá is finishing up film school in Australia."

"Oh, Tommy is in film school himself," Lil mentioned.

"Wow. Where?"

"It's in Los Angeles. I'm studying to be a director."

"Tommy has already made thirty-seven short films in his life," Dil was now gushing about his brother.

And with that, Rudá was dropped from the conversation, like that.

After a while, Charlotte then excused herself.

She went in her room, locked her door, and laid down on her bed.

"Charlotte?" she heard Camilla's voice. "Are you joining us for the delicious dessert?"

"Are those _people _ still here?" Charlotte spat out.

"Yes. They will be leaving soon, though."

"Good."

"Open the door, carina. You are troubled, no?"

With that said, Charlotte opened the door.

"Did you see what happened earlier?"

"Darling, everyone is on their best behavior. Dinner was a great success."

"No, no. Everyone in _this _household did great- it's _them."_

"Seth and Nicole?"

"You know what they did?"

"Uh-"

"They basically said NOTHING about Rudá."

"Oh, you are upset about that."

They sat on Charlotte's bed.

"I know that you are upset," Camilla said. "I went through my share of troubles."

"But- you're rich. Rich people aren't supposed to be troubled."

Camilla laughs. "Al contrario, sweets. All people go through troubles whether they be rich or poor."

"Oh. What happened?"

"It is very long story, carina. I will tell it whenever we don't have company."

"Oh, of course."

"You are coming down, then?"

"Yeah. For dessert."

Camilla smiled. "Come on. The cake and gelato are waiting."

Charlotte smiles back, as she followed Camilla downstairs.

The rest of the night was uneventful, yet smooth as the gang said their good-byes to the Tallbotts.

It was at that night on June eighteenth, twenty-ten, that Charlotte wanted a change in her life and her appearance, and she wanted it ASAP.


	13. A Trip to a Pizza Place

_**Thanks to those who have been reviewing. I really appreciate any feedback I can get, so I can improve on anything that involves my writing or the content. **_

* * *

The next day started out as a quiet lazy Saturday, but soon turned into a significant day.

Charlotte and the gang were eating breakfast and talking amongst themselves, as Charles and Camilla watched over them with admiration.

"We should probably all eat out for dinner," Tommy was saying. "Any suggestions?"

"Uh- lets go to one of those fancy restaurants in the Upper East Side," Angelica said, trying to go first.

"Ew. Those places are too expensive and I hate fancy restaurants anyway," Charlotte exclaimed.

"An Asian restaurant?" Kimi piped up.

"Better, but up there on the expensive side," Tommy said.

"Soul food in Harlem?" Susie and Charlotte both said simultaneously.

"Nah-"

"Burgers? Phil said.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Mexican?" Dil mentioned.

"We've already had Mexican several times on this trip."

"Okay. Bash my idea."

"Oh where, shall we go, that's delicious and cheap in this joint?" Charlotte mused.

"Pizza?" Chuckie muttered.

"Hey, great idea, Chuck!" Tommy said. "There are plenty of pizza places in the city!"

"That depends," Camilla said. "Are we talking about Manhattan or Brooklyn?"

"Uh- Brooklyn?"

"I don't know. Never been."

"Say what? You never gone to any pizza place here?"

"Darling, I'm Italian. We COOK our own pizza."

"Ya know- we COULD go to Roberta's," Charlotte then suggested.

"What's that?"

"A pizza place in Brooklyn. Uncle Jim like loves it- and he's picky about American pizza."

"It must be good then," Charles said.

"Obviously. Plus, I'd like to go to Brooklyn again. Why don't we just go for lunch?"

"All right, Roberta's it is," Tommy said. "How would we get there?"

"It's in the Bushwick neighborhood. I'll print off the directions before we leave."

It was decided that all of them would take the subway to Brooklyn at around eleven AM.

Everyone was getting ready to go a few hours later.

Charlotte sighed, as she got herself ready. Kimi and Lil came in her room.

"Hey, what's up?" Kimi wanted to know. "Are you still depressed?"

"Guys, I've been thinking-"

"You're not gonna change your mind about Roberta's, are you?" Lil demanded.

"No, no. We're still going there. It's just- well- I want to change."

"Change? What do you mean?"

"I want to change my appearance and the way I see life."

"Say what?-"

"Look at me! Just look at me! I'm a mess, aren't I?"

The two look at poor Charlotte, her growing brown hair in disarray due to not getting a good trim in two months, and wearing misshaped casual clothes.

"Do I look like a confident, happy person here?"

"Well-"

"No! I look like a loser, okay?"

"No-"

"A loser, who can't amount to anything, a loser who can't even live her life without thinking about the mistakes she's made throughout the twenty miserable years she's lived.

"Plus, I'm probably the least attractive person in this house."

"Come on-"

"Say it! Just say it! I'm a gawky, awkward girl with messed-up hair, living a screwed up social life. In short, I'm a Plain Jane, who can't amount to anything in this world!"

Silence.

"Don't say those things," Lil then said, calmly. "You just need to get your confidence back and the rest will come."

"Confidence?"

"You're not confident in yourself right now," Kimi was saying.

"Well, yeah. What then?"

"We just have to take some steps to get you back on the confident track, you know?"

"How?"

"Well first- are you coming to this Roberta's place with us?"

"Well, of course. I wouldn't want to skip out on an outing like this over my own problems."

"All right. Maybe after we get back from Brooklyn, we'll get Camilla to schedule a hair appointment."

"Okay."

"We'll go shopping-"

"Okay."

"And we'll give you the best dang makeover that you've ever had!"

"Okay!"

A more cheerful Charlotte and her friends then said their good-byes to the Muffrets, and made their way to the subway. Charlotte smiled at herself, as she used the metro-card given to her by Camilla to get in. For the first time ever, she was taking the subway with people she could enjoy the trip with. Her mom and uncle weren't the best subway companions, as experienced a few times before.

After a few stops and much fun, the gang finally arrived in the Bushwick neighborhood.

"Boy, that was the most fun I've had riding on the subway in my life!" Charlotte was saying.

"You never had fun before?" Dil said.

"I was stuck with my mom and uncle."

"Oh. They complain all the time like Chuckie?"

Chuckie groaned at that. Charlotte didn't blame him; there could be scary aspects to subways.

"Meh- not so much, but significantly."

"Ugh! If you want my opinion, I hated it," Angelica was now complaining.

"Nobody asked for your opinion," Phil said.

"Watch it, DeVille."

"Come on," Tommy said. "We best better get to that pizza place."

"Ah! Let's!" Charlotte exclaimed excitedly.

The group finally arrived at Roberta's.

The guy that was the host seemed shocked and dismayed that a group of nine college students were coming in.

The group ordered quite a bit of pizzas. Seven to be exact.

"Wow, the first time I went here-" Charlotte started.

"With your mom and uncle-" Phil chimed in.

"Sorry, it's getting old. Anyway, we like ordered five whole pizzas and a big old cal-zone."

"For the THREE of you?" Kimi was shocked at the story.

"Yep, but Io and Kate stopped by at the end, and even then we ordered another pizza."

"Oy," Dil exclaimed.

"That's not the end of it. Now Roberta's is one of Uncle James' favorite restaurants in New York, ever. He doesn't even mind the long taxi ride from Harlem to here, just as long as he gets to eat this delectable, flavorful, scrumptious pizza!"

"Yeah!" the others agree with her.

Luckily, there was no problem in terms of paying since Camilla had given them a generous amount in their debit cards. Angelica, of course, was the only one who was in danger of losing money; she had exactly three hundred dollars left.

* * *

That evening, Camilla called her usual hair cut place, a beauty salon located somewhere in the Upper East Side to schedule an unusual appointment.

"All right, thanks Jacques. See you on Monday."

"What's up?" Charlotte, Kimi and Lil came in the living room.

"Ah, girls! You are here at the right time. Charlotte, I've scheduled an appointment for you at my hair salon-"

"Uh oh," muttered Charlotte.

"No, no. Don't worry. It will be a good thing. Trust me."

"What do you mean, good thing? I'm getting gussied up for no reason at all!"

"Darling, when you are going through makeovers, you have to be gussied up. It is a rule, no?"

Charlotte sighed. "I still feel uncomfortable about going to this salon. I've had the same hairdresser for eleven years."

"You'll love Ivana. She won't bite."

"I hope things will go right. I really hope so."

"They will, carina. They will."

The phone then rang.

"Ay. I better get it."

She answers. "Pronto. Muffret residence."

"Who is this?" she then demanded in a serious tone.

Silence. Then she angrily uttered some things in Italian.

"Never call me again!" she slammed the receiver back on the hook.

"Who was that?" Charlotte then demanded.

"No one."

Camilla then rushed away.

Charlotte had no time to worry about this situation. She had a whole list of things to do on Monday. Get hair and everything done, buy some new clothes and accessories, and- go by a new name.


	14. A Most Rude Awakening

Monday came, and the guys were hanging out, bored, in the Muffret's house. Charles and the gals, were of course out, helping with Charlotte's makeover.

"I'm bored!" Phil whined. "What should we do?"

"We could play the Wii," Tommy suggested.

"I'm sick of video games."

"Huh, good point."

"We could just sit here- and just unwind," Chuckie said.

"What are you, Buddhist?" Phil said.

"Come on! There's gotta be _something _we can do!" Dil cried.

"Hmm-"

"We could- um- cook something for the girls for when they get back," Chuckie tries again.

"Are you nuts?" Tommy cried. "We can't cook!"

"Phil can," Dil points out.

"Now wait just a minute-" Phil started.

The phone then rings. Saved by the bell.

"Uh oh. That might be Camilla or the girls," Tommy said.

He went to answer the phone, but hesitates.

"What up, Tommy? Answer it already!" Phil cried.

"The caller ID seems strange- like some foreign number."

"Just take a message!"

"Okay-"

He then answered. "Hello?"

"'Ello? Pronto?" a man's voice in an Italian accent said on the other end.

"Who is this?"

"Is Camilla here? I need to speak to her. Tell her I-"

"No-no, she's out right now."

"Tell her her brother called. Francesco Montello."

"Um-"

"Grazie."

He then hung up.

"Tommy, what happened?" Chuckie wanted to know.

"Camilla apparently has a brother living in Italy, and he just called."

"Hmm- strange. If that was indeed her brother, he could have called Camilla's cell, since she could be away," Phil said.

"Phil's right. That guy could be some kind of alien-"

"Dil!" Tommy cried.

"We could call Camilla about this," Chuckie said.

"We shouldn't. Not when she and the girls are busy making over Char. Besides, they'll be home soon, and then we can give Camilla the message."

"I don't like this," Chuckie shook his head. "I don't like this at all."

* * *

Angelica and Susie were the first of the others to return home.

"Hey, how was the shopping?" Tommy asked the two newcomers.

"Ugh. Tiring," Susie groaned, slumping on a chair.

"I didn't realize how hard makeovers really would be," Angelica said. "What'd you lowlifes do?"

"Nothing."

"Uh huh. Right."

"Seriously, Ange," Phil said. "It was kinda boring, anyway."

"Okay, whatever."

Angelica turned and went upstairs.

"Okay, guys. What happened?" Susie demanded.

"What do you mean?" Phil said.

"Don't play dumb, Phil. Something weird happened, right?"

"You're right, Susie," Dil said. "Some Italian guy called here earlier."

The guys then told Susie the story about Francesco Montello.

"Funny. Camilla never mentions her family."

"Maybe, they're all aliens-"

"DIL!"

"Moving on-" Susie then said. "We should probably talk to Camilla about this at some point."

The guys agree. "We should."

* * *

Camilla, and everyone else returned back home. Charlotte, however, hadn't come in the house.

"All right," Kimi said. "You all ready?"

"Ready for what?" Tommy wondered. The guys were all bewildered.

"Presenting- Carlotta Isabella Muffret!" Camilla motioned at the door.

The new and improved "Carlotta" then walked in. All of the guys stare in shock, their jaws dropped to the ground.

Carlotta, as she will be known for the rest of her life, now had an improved hairstyle, her growing brunette hair tied up with a barrette, until it will be long enough for a ponytail or whatever. Her clothes were different too; she now wore a loose wearing, comfortable feminine blouse with a longish skirt.

"Oh my God. She's gorgeous!" Dil, the least likely to ever compliment a girl, exclaimed.

"We got ALL kinds of outfits for Carlotta!" Camilla cried. "Already we had a few boys glancing her way!"

"Camilla!" Carlotta scolded.

"Well, I'm headed upstairs, to take care of some unfinished, horrid business," she then said, going up to her room.

Once up in her room, Carlotta stared in the mirror, and for the first time in all her life, she felt close to satisfied with what she saw in the reflection.

"Bye-bye, loser Charlotte. Hello, winner Carlotta," she said.

Now to check her email.

Oy.

Late last night, she had sent out an email to Rudá for the first time in almost a year…

_Hey, Ruda!_

_How've you been, dude? Hope life is good in Australia and in film school. As for me, I finished my first year of college, and now I'm off for summer. I've also been watching a lot of basketball since my break started, and once June 11th comes, I'll be watching the 2010 World Cup, just for the sake of watching. Will you be watching it too? If so, are you rooting for anybody? Hopefully Italy, Brazil or England will go deep in the tournament. Anyway, I hope you're doing well, and I hope we could see each other soon._

_Ciao, _

_Charlotte _

She had no desire to tell him about her being in New York with a bunch of new friends. It'll be too sad for him, since he seemed to like living here when he did. It was sad enough mentioning that hopeless wish that they would see each other soon.

Well, at least she could mention the forthcoming World Cup.

Now to see if he responded at all...

"All right. Let's just check, and if there's nothing, check tomorrow, and the day after, and then after a week, give up. No big deal."

Boing! One new message.

"Okay, what is it?"

She was just as shocked as the guys were, when they saw her new and improved look.

A reply from him!

"-My God!"

Apparently the message came at around noon or so (three in the morning Australian time). She thought about getting Kimi and Lil, but then again she could at least read it first.

_Hey Charlotte! Long time no speak!_

_I've been okay. I've been out of school for a few months now, but I'm going back this July. I'm preparing for my final projects which are a bit scary. Two "major" short films I have to write, produce and direct. I'm producing a film now which is pretty epic, so it's been a serious challenge to pull it off. I'm still anxious about it, but ultimately confident! Let's hope for the best! If I was shooting there in the U.S. I'd be getting you to act in it. Ha ha, imagine that! :)_

_How's it going with school? Do you have anything planned for this summer? Ah, it's almost winter here. My fingers are freezing as I type this._

_I'll definitely be watching the FIFA World Cup! I'd normally cheer for Brazil, but they've been pretty disappointing lately. So I'm not sure yet. I like Maradona and he's coaching for Argentina, but I'm still deciding. Maybe I'll give Brazil another chance._

_Yes, we haven't seen each other in a long time! I'd love to go back and visit. I seriously miss New York and everybody. I don't know if I'll be back anytime soon though... :(_

_Okay, I'm going to sleep because it's really late here already. I'll talk to you soon._

_xo_

_Ruda_

Carlotta went through any of the emotions, she could possibly go through. Yes, she was thrilled that he was doing well in film school and all, and yes, she had uttered a chuckle at possibly having an acting part (she always refused whenever Tommy offered her to do a part, acting or otherwise, in one of his future films), and yes, she had smiled at the World Cup situation.

But the sad reality of him not returning back to America soon, caused her to break down in tears in the long run.

Kimi and Lil come in, as she was putting away her laptop.

"Carlotta? What's wrong?"

"Everything SUCKS!" she wailed, throwing a stuffed animal on the floor.

Kimi and Lil exchanged looks. Apparently, something did not go well for her.

Everyone was quiet at dinner that night.

"So, the World Cup is coming up," Phil attempted to make conversation.

Carlotta glares at him. "Shut up!"

"What? I only said-"

"I said, shut up."

"You should listen to her, Phil," Lil said.

"So, the summer pasta is good, no?" Camilla then piped up.

"Why does life have to be so hard? Why do things not work out like we want? Why do people live such pathetic lives hoping and waiting, only to be disappointed every single time?" Carlotta was ranting on.

"Uh-"

"Why DO we live here in this crap world? Why do we live here amongst stupid, retarded, selfish people who only care for themselves and end up driving away other people, you know?"

"I bet you a million, this is about R-U-D-A T-A-L-L-B-O-T-T," Dil muttered to Phil.

"Why is it, that no matter how hard you try to change for the better and move on, you still live in the frickin' past, hoping these hopeless wishes?

"Why? Why? Why? Why? WHY?"

Silence.

The phone rang. Saved by the bell, perhaps?

Charles sighed. "I'll get it."

He gets up and answered the phone.

"Pronto."

"Yes, this is Charles Muffret."

The others sit there, anxiously wondering what was up.

"No, we don't. I don't know- what do you want?"

"Is is that stronzo, Charles?" Camilla quickly got up toward her husband.

There was much nervous chattering, of a mix of Italian and English.

The telephone receiver was then slammed, and the Muffrets came back with sombre faces. Uh oh.

"He knows about you, Carlotta."

The friends look at them confused.

"What the hell do you mean?" Angelica of course wanted to know.

"Yeah, what's been going on?" Carlotta demands.

"Francesco Montello, my brother, claims-" Camilla had started but wouldn't go on. She then proceeded to cry curses in Italian.

"He believes she's alive!" Charles blurted out.

"Who's alive?"

No answer.

"Now is not the time to discuss this," Camilla said.

Carlotta shook her head. Well, they would have to discuss this situation- sooner or later.


End file.
